More than 30 firefighters battled a blaze in a disused office building last night.

Crews were called to the fire, next to the Dairy Crest site on Chigwell Road, South Woodford, at 8pm yesterday and it took them more than two hours to get the flames under control.

Parts of the first floor and roof of the building were destroyed, and efforts by the brigade stopped flames spreading to the rest of the building.

A watch manager from Hainault fire station, who was at the scene until midnight, said: “The fire destroyed an office of about 30m by 10m, and the main fire was in the roof, which was really alight.

“It took about four hours to put out the flames completely and some crews were there during the night.”

Crews from Leytonstone, Leyton, Woodford and Walthamstow stations were in attendance and the cause of the fire is under investigation.